Experimenting with Tilt and Shift
Trapeze, September 2008
I was in high school when I first became fascinated with a photographer’s work who shot in abandoned places using a tilt-shift lens. I didn’t understand how the focus was on a single spot, despite looking straight on at a flat surface. This is also when I learned the “smear vaseline on your lens and fake it” trick, which I fortunately never tried. It kills me that I can’t remember that photographer I revered so long ago, but I do know who stands out in my mind in this day and age. Vincent Laforet has used the tilt-shift in many sporting events, most recently the Beijing Olympics.
Michelle, September 2008
When I first arrived back in New York I got word that our department invested in some new equipment including a tilt-shift lens for Canon SLRs and on the first day of classes I rented it for experimentation. The various tricks you can elicit with a tilt-shift are many but they’re most commonly used to make objects and landscapes appear miniature. I also found, while shooting, that there’s a general dream quality to the images because of the smooth bokeh emitting outward from the focal point. I must admit, I don’t fully understand the difference between tilt and shift but that’s what Wikipedia is for.
Broome St, September 2008
My main goal while renting out the lens was to figure out what shots it was conducive to outside of what I already knew. I brought three friends to Pier 54 and attempted to shoot portraits. Unless you’re looking for wonky distortion, I would say stand back from your subjects. When shooting up close there was a mix of fish-eye effect and the liquify tool all going on within my camera. The shift allows you to shoot people to your side without them realizing the camera is pointing in their direction… Although you sacrifice anonymity for major distortion. I suppose the best way to describe the effect is that it bends the picture plane. It’s hard to resist going to the extremes of the tilt and shift (you turn a knob for each) but I would suggest subtle turns when combining the two. The last thing, and one of the most important things I should mention, is the drop in exposure. (This is an assumption and I could be wrong) but it seems to me that because the lens is bending and moving up and down, it cuts off some of the light that’s able to reach the sensor (or perhaps it bounces?). But alas, the point is that you will need to turn it to manual and drop your shutter speed / widen your aperture or you’re going to be looking at some very underexposed shots. I hope to take the lens out for a longer period of time in the future but for now I leave you with these basics.
Michael George :: Sep.20.2008 :: Miscellaneous, My Photography :: 1 Comment »
Really interesting post – I did a few experiments with the “fake tilt-shift” effect in Photoshop, some photos of ruins in Greece were particularly pleasing – it’s definitely fun to try, but it must be a pleasure to be able to achieve this effect purely by the laws of physics!
That first shot is yours? I really like the composition. And the second is beautiful as well – you’re right in that the very characteristic bokeh contributes a surreal quality to the shots.
Some great stuff here! Glad I found your site – I’ll be back often.